Almost, But Not Quite
by Misha
Summary: He made her happy and that was almost enough, but not quite because he wasn't the one she was in love with. DonnaCliff, a little bit JD


Almost, But Not Quite   
By Misha 

Disclaimer- These characters are the property of NBC, Aaron Sorkin, or whoever. I'm not writing this for profit in any way, shape, or form, but because I have a lot of spare time on my hands. 

Author's Notes- I don't know what made me write this. I'm a die-hard Josh/Donna fan, yet... This kind of popped into my head and wouldn't let me ignore it. There's a little bit of angsty J/D shipperness at the end, but mostly this is, sad to say, a Cliff/Donna story. I've tried to hate him, really I have, but I haven't been successful. So, there's not Cliff bashing in this. Also, this is set after "The Two Bartletts" and was inspired by Donna's mentions of a lawyer boyfriend. My mind automatically went to Cliff, which is why this was born. Well, that's all, enjoy! 

Spoilers- Everything up to "The Two Bartletts". 

Rating- PG   
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Donna had been going to go straight home after calling Amy, but in the end she decided that Josh shouldn't be the only one getting lucky that night. 

More than that, Cliff helped make her feel less alone and more alive than she usually did. 

So on impulse, she took a cab to his apartment. She didn't even have to wait for him to buzz her up, since she managed to slip in as someone else was coming into the building. 

As she approached his door, a part of her was wary. She had learnt the hard way that surprises were not always good, but at the same time the fear was small. 

She trusted him, knew that though this thing between him was strange and dangerous, he wouldn't hurt her. 

So, with a smile, she knocked on his door. 

He answered in jeans and a sweatshirt, which told her that he had planned a quiet evening at home. 

"Donna." He said softly when he saw her. "What are you doing here?" 

"I don't know." She said with a smile. "I just sort of found myself heading this way and decided to say hi." 

Cliff smiled and motioned for her to come in. 

"Well, I'm glad you did." He told her, as he closed the door behind her and leaned down to give her a quick kiss. 

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" She asked as she followed him into the living room. 

"No." He told her. "I was just proofing some documents, nothing that can't wait." 

She smiled. "I'm glad. I... I just wanted to spend some time with you." 

He smiled back at her and took one of her hands in his. "I'm up for that." 

He kissed her again. 

"I've got jury duty tomorrow." Donna told him. 

Cliff smiled. "Interesting." 

Donna sighed. "I'm trying to get out of it, but..." 

"Try to make yourself unsuitable." He suggested. "So you get passed over." 

"I am." Donna said. "It's not that I don't want to do my part, but..." 

"You have a hectic job and little free-time as it is?" Cliff suggested. 

"Exactly." Donna told him. "And Josh wouldn't survive without me if I had to take sometime off. You should see what a mess he makes of his office when I'm not there." 

Cliff stiffened slightly at the mention of Josh. 

"Does he know about us?" He asked suddenly. "That we're seeing each other again, I mean?" 

Donna shook her head. "Not exactly." She sighed. "I mean, I told him that I was seeing someone and I mentioned that I was dating a lawyer, but..." 

"You didn't give him a name." Cliff said quietly. 

"No." Donna told him. "But why should I? It's none of his business who I date, after all, the investigation's over." 

"I'm still a Republican." Cliff commented. 

"So?" Donna said with a shrug. "I'm dating you, not your party." 

She sighed again. 

"Why do we have to let work interfere?" She asked him softly. "Can't we just be Cliff and Donna, two people who are attracted to one another and are trying to see if they can make a relationship work?" 

Cliff smiled. 

"That works for me." He said after a moment. "Are you hungry?" 

"Starved." Donna said. "Why?" 

"I was just about to order in some food." Cliff told her. "Got any preferences?" 

"How about Chinese?" Donna suggested with a smile. 

Cliff smiled and reached for the phone. "Sounds good." 

He made the order and when he was done, he sat down on the couch. Donna joined him, leaning her head against his shoulder. 

"Do you want to watch a movie?" He asked softly. 

She smiled at him. "That'd be nice." She said, meaning it. 

Her life was so hectic, that it felt nice to relax, to get away from everything and be like everyone else. 

With a smile, she chose the movie and they put it on, then the food arrived. They ate as they watched the movie, smiling and laughing as they did, just happy to be with one another. 

Still, even as she relaxed and had a good time, she had a hard time keeping her mind off of Josh and how his evening with Amy was going. 

She tried to push the thought of the two of them together out of her mind, after all it didn't matter to her. What Josh did on his personal time was his business, not hers. He was her boss and her friend, nothing else. 

Nor did she want him to be, really. 

She repressed a sigh, as Cliff's arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer to him. 

She was happy. Cliff was a good man and he was a good boyfriend. Despite everything, they could be happy. They **were** happy. 

She had to accept that Josh was never going to be hers and move on. 

She had already done so. She had put her feelings for Josh aside once and for all, determined not to want more than he could give her. 

Yet even as she and Cliff spoke softly, and he moved to turn off the TV as they headed towards his bedroom, she couldn't help but wish that he was Josh. 

But he wasn't, would never be, so she'd deal and do what she had done all her life. Settle for second best. 

After all, it wasn't as if she was getting the short end of the stick this time. 

Cliff was a great guy, she was lucky to be with him. She should be over the moon and she almost was, but not quite. 

Because, no matter how great he was and how happy he made her, there was a part of her that couldn't forget one simple fact. 

He wasn't Josh. 

The End 


End file.
